Suction brush having hair removal unit for vacuum cleaner

ABSTRACT

A suction brush having a hair removal unit for a vacuum cleaner is provided. The suction brush includes a brush body having a rear end fluidly connected to a main body of the vacuum cleaner, a suction port on a lower surface of a front end, and a rotation brush inside the suction port; and a hair removal unit detachably connected to the suction port.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) of KoreanPatent Application No. 10-2007-0082372, filed on Aug. 16, 2007, in theKorean Intellectual Property Office, the entire disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference.

Also, this application may be related to commonly-owned copending U.S.Pat. Nos. 7,296,324, filed Jul. 29, 2004, by Byung-jo Lee; 7,272,872,filed May 24, 2004, by Keon-soo Choi; 6,918,156, filed Jul. 16, 2002, bySang-tae Joo; and commonly-owned copending U.S. application Ser. Nos.10/851,070, filed May 24, 2004, by Jong-kook Lim et al.; 10/991,426,filed Nov. 19, 2004, by Kyoung-woong Kim; 11/362,144, filed Feb. 27,2006, by Myung-won Lee et al.; 11/363,032, filed Feb. 28, 2006 byHwa-gyu Song et al; 11/386,802, filed Mar. 23, 2006, by Hyun-ju Lee etal.; the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner. More particularly,the present invention relates to a single suction brush that is capableof cleaning a variety of different surfaces.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Vacuum cleaners generally use a variety of accessory brushes to moreconveniently clean different cleaning surfaces. An example of a suctionbrush to clean human or animal hair tangled in blankets or carpets isdisclosed in U.K. Patent Registration No. GB 2,425,715.

In the above-referenced conventional invention, a general suction brushand a hair removal suction brush are used separately according to thetype of cleaning surface. General floors are cleaned using the generalsuction brush. But, in order to clean blankets or carpets, the entiregeneral suction brush assembly must be separated from an extended tubeand a hair removal suction brush must be installed and used in itsplace.

Changing the suction brush according to the cleaning surface in such amanner is inconvenient, and because two or more suction brushes arenecessary, manufacturing costs are increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, to solve at least the above problems and/or disadvantagesand to provide at least the advantages described below, a non-limitingobject of the present invention is to provide a single suction brush fora vacuum cleaner that is able to be used for both cleaning on generalfloor surfaces and floor surfaces with tangled hair, the suction brushincludes a brush body having a rear end fluidly connected to a main bodyof the vacuum cleaner, a suction port on a lower surface of a front end,and a rotation brush inside the suction port; and a hair removal unitdetachably connected to the suction port.

The hair removal unit includes a support frame mounted on the suctionport and including a front, a back and sides with a hole disposedtherebetween, the hole corresponding to the suction port; a first brushmember connected to the front of the support frame and a second brushmember connected to the back of the support frame; at least one hookthat extends from the front of the support frame to fix the supportframe at the front of the suction port; and at least one connection unitthat extends from the back of the support frame to fix the support frameat the back of the suction port.

The connection unit includes a front end configured to snap-engage witha connection hole formed at the back of the suction port to attach thesupport frame to the brush body and a lever configured to draw the frontend of the connection unit out of the connection hole to separate thesupport frame from the brush body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects and/or advantages of the invention willbecome apparent and more readily appreciated from the followingdescription of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a suction brush for a vacuum cleaneraccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a exploded perspective view of a suction brush for a vacuumcleaner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view of a suction brush for a vacuumcleaner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of part A in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of part B in FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to non-limiting embodiments of thepresent invention by way of reference to the accompanying drawings,wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts, components andstructures.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a suction brush according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a brush body 100,a rotation brush 110, and a hair removal unit 200.

The brush body 100 includes a drum casing unit 120 at the front thatsupports the rotation brush 110 so that the rotation brush 110 can berotated, a suction port 121 under the drum casing unit 120 to draw indust-laden air, and a connection port 130 that is connected to anextended tube (not shown) connected to a main body (not shown) of thevacuum cleaner and transfers the dust-laden air drawn in through thesuction port 121 to the main body of the vacuum cleaner.

The drum casing unit 120 includes first and second holding holes 123 aand 123 b formed at the front of the suction port 121, wherein the frontend of first and second hooks 221 and 223 are inserted, and first andsecond connection holes 125 a and 125 b formed at the back of thesuction port 121, to snap-engage hanging units 231 a and 233 a of firstand second connection units 231 and 233.

The drum casing unit 120 further includes a rib support 128 a thatextends in the front and back of the suction port 121, and a rotationbrush support 128 b that rotatably supports the rotation brush 110.Elevated parts 126 a, 126 b, 126 c and 126 d extend between the twosides of the drum casing unit 120, the rib support 128 a, and therotation brush support 128 b.

As shown in FIG. 2, the hair removal unit 200 is snap-engaged with thesuction port 121 of the drum casing unit 120 in order to be removablyconnected to the suction port 121. The hair removal unit includes firstand second brush members 241 and 243 disposed at the front and back ofthe suction port 121 respectively so human or animal hair tangled inblankets or carpets can be easily removed. The hair removal unit 200further includes a support frame 210, first and second hooks 221 and223, first and second connection units 231 and 233, and first and secondbrush members 241 and 243, each of which is described in more detailbelow.

The support frame 210 is tetragonal in shape so as to correspond withthe suction port 121, and has a hole 211 in the center to enable fluidcommunication between the suction port 121 and a surface to be cleaned.First and second ribs 213 a and 213 b are formed at certain intervals toextend from the front to the back of the hole 211. The first and secondribs 213 a and 213 b prevent a part of a blanket or carpet from beingsucked through the hole 211 into the suction port 121 so thatmanipulation of the brush body 100 on the blanket or carpet is enhanced.Holding grooves 214 a, 214 b, 214 c and 214 d extend between the twosides of the support frame 210 and the first and second ribs 213 a and213 b.

Holding grooves 214 a and 214 b are formed on both sides of the supportframe 210 to receive the elevated parts 126 a and 126 b respectively onboth sides of the suction port 121. Accordingly, when the brush body 100is moved forward and backward during cleaning and the first and secondbrush members 241 and 243 are in contact with the floor, the interfacebetween the matching uneven surfaces of the holding grooves 214 a and214 b of the support frame 210 and the elevated parts 126 a and 126 brespectively of the suction port 121 firmly fixes the support frame 210to the drum casing unit 120 so that the support frame 210 is notdisplaced from the suction port 121 by frictional forces generatedbetween the first and second brush members 241 and 243 and the floorbeing cleaned.

To more firmly fix the support frame 210 to the drum casing unit 120,elevated parts 126 c and 126 d are disposed on the rib support 128 a andthe rotation brush support 128 b respectively, and the first and secondribs 213 a and 213 b have corresponding holding grooves 214 c and 214 drespectively to receive the elevated parts 126 c and 126 d respectively.The interface between the matching uneven surfaces of the holdinggrooves 214 c and 214 d of the rib support 128 a and the rotation brushsupport 128 b respectively and the elevated parts 126 a and 126 b of thesuction port 121 fix the support frame 210 to the drum casing unit 120in the same manner discussed above.

The first and second hooks 221 and 223 protrude from the front of thesupport frame 210 at certain intervals to fix the front of the supportframe 210 to the front of the drum casing unit 120. The front ends 221 aand 223 a of the first and second hooks 221 and 223 respectively areinserted into the first and second holding holes 123 a and 123 brespectively of the drum casing unit 120.

The first and second connection units 231 and 233 protrude from the backof the support frame 210 at certain intervals to fix the back of thesupport frame 210 to the drum casing unit 120. The first and secondhanging units 231 a and 233 a are disposed on the first and secondconnection units 231 and 233 respectively so as to be snap-engaged withthe first and second connection holes 125 a and 125 b respectively ofthe drum casing unit 120. The first and second connection units 231 and233 also have lever protrusions 231 b and 233 b respectively to separatethe first and second hanging units 231 a and 233 a from the first andsecond connection holes 125 a and 125 b respectively when the hairremoval unit 200 is separated from the drum casing unit 120.

In order for the first and second connection units 231 and 233 to beelastically connected to the support frame 120, the support frame 120and the first and second connection units 231 and 233 may be made ofelastic material such as synthetic rubber or plastic.

In addition to fixing the support frame 210 to the drum casing unit 120,the interface of the first and second hooks 221 and 223 and first andsecond connection units 231 and 233 of the support frame 210 insertedinto the first and second holding holes 123 a, 123 b, 125 a and 125 brespectively of the drum casing unit 120 also supplements the interfacebetween the matching uneven surfaces of the holding grooves 214 a and214 b of the support frame 210 and the elevated parts 126 a and 126 brespectively of the suction port 121. This interface supplements theinterface between the matching uneven surfaces of the holding grooves214 a and 214 b of the support frame 210 and the elevated parts 126 aand 126 b respectively of the suction port 121 by further fixing thesupport frame 210 to the drum casing unit 120 so that the support frame210 is not displaced from the suction port 121 by forces generated in adirection inclined to the forward and backward movement during cleaning,such as a force perpendicular to the forward and backward movement.

In this exemplary embodiment, the support frame 210 is described ashaving a pair of the first second hooks 221 and 223 and a pair of firstand second connection units 231 and 233, but the present invention isnot limited thereto. The number of first and second hooks 221 and 223and first and second connection units 231 and 233 may vary.

The first and second brush members 241 and 243 may be detachablyconnected at the front and the back of the support frame 210 and may bemade of a material having a certain solidity that will not damageblankets or carpets during cleaning.

The operation of the suction brush according to the exemplary embodimentof the present invention is described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the support frame 210 of the hair removal unit200 is connected to the suction port 121 as shown in FIG. 2, the frontends 221 a and 223 a of the first and second hooks 221 and 223 areinserted into and fixed to the first and second holding holes 123 a and123 b of the drum casing unit 120. In this configuration, when the backof the support frame 210 is connected to the back of the drum casingunit 120 by compressing the back of the support frame 210 using acertain force, the hanging units 231 a and 233 a of the first and secondconnection units 231 and 233 are snap-engaged with the first and secondconnection holes 125 a and 125 b respectively as shown in FIG. 5.

When the hair removal unit 200 is separated from the brush body 100, thelever protrusions 231 b and 233 b are drawn out of the first and secondconnection holes 125 a and 125 b respectively by elastically pulling thelever protrusions 231 b and 233 b of the first and second connectionunits 231 and 233 respectively in the reverse direction to that in whichthe brush body 100 was pushed into place. In this configuration, thefront ends 221 a and 223 a of the first and second hooks 221 and 223 arcunhooked from the first and second holding holes 123 a and 123 brespectively so that the hair removal unit 200 can be easily andconveniently separated from the brush body 100.

As described in the above exemplary embodiment, the user can easily andconveniently mount and remove the hair removal unit 200 on the brushbody 100. The lever protrusions 231 b and 233 b enable the user to mountand remove the hair removal unit 200 on the brush body 100 withoutcontacting the first and second brush members 241 and 243, therebyavoiding fouling the user with dirt and debris collected thereon. Theuser may, for example, take each lever protrusion 231 b and 233 bbetween their thumb and forefinger to mount or remove the hair removalunit 200 on the brush body 100.

As can be appreciated from the above description, when a surface such asa blanket or carpet containing tangled human or animal hair is cleaned,the user can easily connect and use the hair removal unit with thesuction brush. And, for general floors, the user can easily separate thehair removal unit from the suction brush without removing the entiresuction brush, thereby enhancing user convenience.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a hair removal unit 200 thatis mounted on a brush body 100 by snap engagement, so a single suctionbrush can clean a variety of floor surfaces without need for a separatesuction brush. This reduces manufacturing costs, improves userconvenience, and reduces fouling of the user.

While the embodiments of the present invention have been described withreference to certain embodiments thereof, additional variations andmodifications of the embodiments may occur to those skilled in the artonce they learn of the basic inventive concepts. Therefore, it isintended that the appended claims shall be construed to include both theabove embodiments and all such variations and modifications that fallwithin the spirit and scope of the invention.

1. A suction brush for a vacuum cleaner, the suction brush comprising: abrush body having a rear end fluidly connected to a main body of thevacuum cleaner, a suction port on a lower surface of a front end, and arotation brush inside the suction port, the suction port having a frontand a back; and a hair removal unit having a front and a back, the hairremoval unit being detachably connected to the suction port.
 2. Thesuction brush of claim 1, wherein the hair removal unit includes: asupport frame mounted on the suction port and including a front, a backand sides with a hole disposed therebetween, the hole corresponding tothe suction port; a first brush member connected to the front of thesupport frame and a second brush member connected to the back of thesupport frame; at least one hook that extends from the front of thesupport frame to attach the support frame at the front of the suctionport; and at least one connection unit that extends from the back of thesupport frame to attach the support frame at the back of the suctionport.
 3. The suction brush of claim 2, wherein the connection unitincludes a front end configured to snap-engage with a connection holeformed at the back of the suction port to attach the support frame tothe brush body and a lever configured to draw the front end of theconnection unit out of the connection hole to separate the support framefrom the brush body.
 4. The suction brush of claim 2, wherein theconnection unit extends elastically from the support frame.
 5. Thesuction brush of claim 1, wherein the support frame is held in place onthe suction port by surfaces on the support frame engaging surfaces onthe brush body in more than one plane.
 6. The suction brush of claim 2,wherein the support frame includes at least one rib formed to cross thehole so as to prevent a part of a blanket or carpet from being suckedinto the suction port.
 7. The suction brush of claim 6, wherein thesupport frame is held in place on the suction port by surfaces on the atleast one rib on the support frame engaging surfaces on at least one ribon the brush body in more than one plane.